Worcester Red Sox to be sold to Diamond Baseball Holdings; team will remain at Polar Park
WORCESTER — Owners of the Worcester Red Sox have reached an agreement to sell the team to Diamond Baseball Holdings, sources told the T&G while confirming a report from Michael Silverman of The Boston Globe.
The team is expected to remain at Polar Park.
Just a few weeks after WooSox principal owner Larry Lucchino hinted on a podcast that he was looking to sell the team, ownership of the Boston Red Sox Triple-A affiliate is changing hands.
“I'm now 78,” Lucchino said on UnAnchored Boston podcast on Nov. 7. “I've been at this for over 40 years, so it's time to sell this team and to move on ... to a blissful retirement."
Lucchino is expected to stay on as chairman, however, while Ralph D. Crowley Jr., president and CEO at Polar Beverages, is planning to stay involved with ownership of the WooSox. According to Silverman, Diamond Baseball Holdings plans to buy out a majority of the 11 owners with the deal pending approval of Major League Baseball.
A call to Lucchino wasn't returned as of Thursday evening. Via text message, WooSox President Charles Steinberg responded with: “We have no news or announcements at this time.”
Lucchino became president and CEO of the Boston Red Sox in 2001 after John Henry purchased the team. Lucchino stepped down in 2015 before becoming part of a group that purchased the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox for $25 million.
With rumors swirling at a potential sale, Steinberg told the T&G on Nov. 10 that “ever since the summer of 2021, there have been potential suitors for the WooSox, and that interest continues.”
According to Silverman’s report, the WooSox’s 35-year lease to play at Polar Park remains intact — a sentiment Steinberg shared while talking with the T&G earlier this month.
“So the mobility of the team is not in question,” Steinberg said.
Since being founded in 2021, Diamond Baseball Holdings has bought 26 minor league baseball teams — including Red Sox affiliates like the Salem Red Sox (Single-A) and Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A).
According to its website, Diamond Baseball Holdings is “committed to elevating fan experiences, creating ‘centers of energy,’ fostering dynamic engagements for brands and highlighting the evolution of the Minor League Baseball environment.”
Diamond Baseball Holdings is run by Executive Chairman Pat Battle and CEO Peter Freund.
Per Silverman, Diamond Baseball Holdings is believed to have made a bid of approximately $50 million two years ago to buy the Worcester team.
“We’ve been talking to various people for many months trying to find a local owner who would step up,” Lucchino said on the podcast. “It’s something that’s been going on for some time, but whether it happens in the next six weeks or six months or six years remains to be seen.”
Asked Friday morning about the sale reports, a spokesman for City Manager Eric Batista said, "The Worcester Red Sox have kept the city informed with notifications, but there is no announcement at this time."
T&G reporters Jeff A. Chamer and Marco Cartolano also contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Red Sox to be sold to Diamond Baseball Holdings
